1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to authenticated print processing technology for printing data in front of a user after the user is authenticated.
2. Related Art
While security of the whole IT system is required, as printing technology considering security relating to output from a printer, authenticated printing systems in which only a user who has directed printing can acquire a print output by temporarily holding data directed to be printed by a user and printing the data on the condition that the user is authenticated have been disclosed.
In general authenticated printing systems, an authentication process is performed after a user performs an authentication operation at a printer. However, in this authentication process, a complex process such as handling of biometric information or high-level encryption is required. Accordingly, initiation of a printing process is necessarily delayed in the general authenticated printing systems, and thereby the user tends to have uneasiness and an unpleasant feeling.
On the contrary, in JP-A-2002-187317, an authenticated printing system capable of shortening a time up to initiation of a printing process by skipping authentication of a part for which authentication is designated not to be required by a user has been disclosed.
However, there are problems in the authenticated printing system disclosed in JP-A-2002-187317 in terms of both speed of the authentication process and security as described below. In other words, in the authenticated printing system disclosed in JP-A-2002-187317, the authentication process is not improved much, and accordingly, a time required for initiating a printing process for a job requiring authentication has not been improved. In addition, in a case where a job not to be authenticated can be designated, an easy way for avoiding authentication is given to a user, and there is a tendency that the user does not use the authenticated printing for avoiding a waiting time for the authenticated printing process.